Samsung has a large chip-making plant in Xian, a city in China that is currently under lockdown in order to curb the spread of COVID-19 and the South Korean company recently announced that its facility was also affected.
Because of this, Samsung says it will temporarily adjust operations at its plants in the city and will also take all necessary measures in factories located in other areas in order to ensure that its customers are not affected.
The factory is reported to have over 3,300 employees in Xian alone and it’s the company’s top priority.
The local authority in the city isn’t having and there is zero-tolerance for the spread of the coronavirus even though the government is on the verge of adopting a pill treatment to further combat the respiratory illness.
Statements about the safety measures were made public by Samsung after media reports that its plants had to take emergency measures such as requiring its essential workers to stay in on-site dormitories in case of lockdown continues.
Reports also said the company was consulting Chinese authorities on how to continue production.
Last Friday, a Samsung representative told South Korean news outlet Yonhap that emergency measures in Xian had “not affected production” because of workers living on the corporate campus.
However, TrendForce said last week that the South Korean tech giant could face logistical issues due to the Xian’s lockdown in the near future as well as experience delays in its shipments.
Over the past week, Xian’s authorities have issued a mandatory lockdown due to the increasing number of COVID-19 cases in China’s central Shaanxi province.
Residents were mandated to stay indoors and many voiced their concerns via Weibo that they had trouble getting daily supplies.
Control measures intensified on Sunday, when roads, buildings and other open spaces across the city of 13 million were covered in disinfectant sprayed through the air.
However, Samsung is one of the most important forces in semi-conductor production due to global shortage.
Its Xian plant commenced operation back in 2014 and has become a very important contributor to the local economy while also earning the government’s praises.
Intel boss once predicted this year that the global chip shortage will last until the year 2023 however, a disruption in the process could ruin this prediction.
The combined output of the Xian plants accounted for 42.5 per cent of Samsung’s total NAND flash production capacity and 15.3 per cent of all NAND production globally, according to TrendForce data.
US memory chip giant Micron, which runs a DRAM assembly and test site in Xian, also said in a statement that it is “working with local government officials to identify solutions” that will enable it to continue operations at its facility.
The firm is also reportedly working with suppliers and partners in order to minimize the impact on delivery schedules.